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Brown v. Board of Education
The NAACP organized and fought 5 cases in the Supreme Court. These cases were fought under the ideals that both blacks and white children should be able to attend school in harmony together. The court ruled 9-0 in favor of this, however because of hate crimes, most black people still will not attend school for another 10 years. -
Murder of Emmett Till
While shopping at a local store with his cousins, Emmett Till was accused of whistling at the store owners white wife. Three days later Emmett was dragged out of his uncles house and kidnapped by white men including the store owner. These kidnappers had detached Emmetts eye, cut off his ear, beaten him until unrecognizable, and then wrapped barbed wire around his neck to weigh him down in the river with a seventy five pound fan. His body would later be found starting a civil rights movement. -
Rosa Parks and the Bus Boycott
While sitting in a crowded bus in the colored section, Rosa Parks was demanded to give up her seat. The Jim Crow laws at the time forced blacks to sit at the back of the bus and give up their seats to white people when the buss is full. Rosa Parks abstained from giving in to this injustice and refused to give up her seat leading to her later arrest. This incident prompted the civil rights protests of boycotting busses. -
Little Rock 9
After the overturn of "separate but equal" nine students wanted to attend a white school. Out of anger for this change in status, the Arkansas Governor called the national guard to stop them. After hearing of this President Eisenhower called in 1200 military men to escort the student from their homes to class. Following this victory, in 1959 all schools would finally be integrated. -
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference was a meeting of black church Pastors to coordinate events for black people. This group used non-violent strategies to fight for their civil rights. Accomplishing many feats, this group registered blacks to vote, spoke out for better jobs for blacks ,and openly opposed the Vietnam war. -
Greensboro Sit-ins
On February 1, 1960, four collage students began a civil rights movement in Woolworth's store. After shopping, they sat at a lunch counter for service until they were asked to leave or stand in the blacks section. After refusing to move they sat in the same spot day after day, attracting more students to sit with them. The amount of students sitting in grew over the days to over 1000 students, forcing Woolworths and many other lunch counters to obey the desegregation laws. -
Freedom Riders
In 1961, a diverse group of people decided to protest segregation in the South, by riding busses together to the south. Although they knew they would face scrutiny, they could have never imagined the horrors that awaited them. Upon arrival, the tires were slashed and the bus was fire bombed by the KKK and many others. After escaping the busses the people would be beaten by the crowd as the police turned a blind eye. Over 436 people were involved in 60 separate freedom rides. -
March on Washington
In 1963, a peaceful march and protest was planned and orchestrated. 250,000 people marched on Washington for jobs and freedom, which became one of the largest gathering in U.S. history. Ending this event, Martin Luther King Jr. sealed his fate as the most influential member of this march by giving his "I Have a Dream" speech. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 enabled the federal government to prevent racial discrimination and segregation. This law prevented racial discrimination and segregation based on race, color, religion, and national origin. These stipulations pertained to all people, in private businesses and public faculties. Martin Luther King Jr. was witness to the signing of this act and the end of his civil rights revolution. -
Malcom X
Malcom X was an African American man born in Omaha Nebraska. After the death of his father and the institutionalization of his mother, Malcom and his siblings were put into foster care. He was soon after arrested for the first time, for burglary. While in prison Malcom discovered the Nation of Islam and was inspired to push black people to believe in themselves and start their own businesses. He inspired many people in the civil rights movement before being shot 21 times at the age of 39. -
Selma (Bloody Sunday)
In 1965, about 600 black people decided to march to Montgomery Alabama to register to vote. The Police troopers heard of this plan and waited at the Edmund Bridge for the marchers. Upon arrival at the bridge, the marchers were brutally beaten by the troopers on national television. This horrific display urged President Johnson to sign the Voting Rights Act, allowing people to march to Montgomery and vote supported by the 15th amendment. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
In 1870 the 15th Amendment was passed, allowing African Americans to vote. This upset the Southern States, causing them to revert back to using Jim Crow Laws. Many civil rights protests were led to overturn these laws and attain the rights of African Americans. The Voting Rights Act was signed in 1965 to further clarify the rights of African Americans. This act was supported by the 15th amendment. -
Martin Luther King Jr.
In 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. went to Memphis to support striking sanitation workers. While at his hotel, Martin was shot in the lower right side of his face while leaning over a railing. James Earl Ray would later be discovered as the man who shot Matin with a Remington Rifle.